From Thanksgiving leftovers to Valentine’s Day delicacies, it is easy to adopt bad eating habits during the holidays. As you exit the winter season and enter spring season, you’re probably craving a little “spring cleaning” to get your eating habits back on track.
That said, here are a few healthy eating tips to make sure you are feeling fresh and clean through the spring season:
1. Replace Added Sugars
Let’s face it, from peanut butter to soda, sugar is in everything we love. But added sugars can have a massive impact on your overall health. Short-term, eating too much added sugars can contribute to acne, weight gain, and tiredness. Long-term, however, they can dramatically increase the risk of chronic diseases including type 2 diabetes and heart disease.
Realistically, it is impossible to avoid sugar completely, but you can replace sugars with all-natural sweeteners, like stevia or monk fruit. Since SweetLeaf® products have a non-glycemic response, you can mitigate the risks associated with added sugars such as heightened blood sugar or insulin levels.
Here are a few simple substitutes you can start swapping immediately:
- Instead of adding sugar when baking, swap in Better Than Sugar!® or SweetLeaf® Granular Monk Fruit Sweetener as a healthy, natural replacement
- Toss out the liquified, sugar-based syrups, instead use SweetLeaf® Stevia Sugar-Free Syrup
- Replace the creamer in your morning coffee with one of the many diverse flavors of Sweet Drops®
2. Get Some Color in Your Diet
You’ve heard it before and you’ll hear it again – fruits and vegetables are one of the best ways to introduce a healthier diet. By reaping the rainbow of spring and summer harvests, you can fill your body with fiber, vitamins, and other disease-fighting compounds.
The rule of thumb when cooking is to shoot for three or more colors per meal and at least two colors per snack. For example, if you are cooking glazed salmon, try adding a small side salad with some citrus accents and a handful of green parsley. To give your meal a little extra citrus flare, try adding a teaspoon of SweetLeaf® Liquid Stevia Valencia Orange Sweet Drops®.
According to Registered Dieticians, the average meal break-down should consist of:
- 50% colorful fruits and vegetables
- 25% whole grains (bread, pasta, rice)
- 25% protein (chicken, fish, eggs, beans)
3. Don’t Skip Meals
One of the most common misconceptions when it comes to diet and healthy eating is to simply eat less food. Unfortunately, that’s not how it works. By skipping meals and not changing the food content, you are more likely to feel lethargic, tired, and unmotivated. Additionally, skipping meals can negatively impact your metabolism which can cause weight gain or make it harder to lose weight.
Dieticians say eating smaller meals or healthy snacks every 3-4 hours is the best way to improve productivity and bodily health!
4. Drink More Water
Between soda and alcohol, most Americans are putting a steady stream of fluids that have no nutritional value into their body which ultimately leads to dehydration. Dehydration often results in a slowed metabolism which can present as the feeling of hunger. In turn, people are more likely to eat unfulfilling and generally unhealthy snacks or fast food.
Next time you are feeling hungry outside of one of your regular meals, try drinking a glass of water to soothe your stomach and rehydrate.
That said, if you want to spruce up your water to add a little diversity to your beverages, try adding just a couple of drops of our SweetLeaf® Water Drops® for a tasty, calorie-free flavor boost!
